backwash
Americannoun
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Nautical. water thrown backward by the motion of oars, propellers, paddle wheels, etc.
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Aeronautics. the portion of the wash of an aircraft that flows to the rear, usually created by the power plant.
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a condition, usually undesirable, that continues long after the event which caused it.
- Synonyms:
- upshot, result, consequence, aftermath
verb (used with object)
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to affect, as by hitting, rocking, or splashing, with a backwash.
a powerful cutter backwashing the skiers.
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to clean out (a clogged filter) by reversing the flow of fluid.
Backwash the swimming pool's filters regularly.
noun
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a sucking movement of water, such as that of retreating waves Compare swash
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water washed backwards by the motion of oars or other propelling devices
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the backward flow of air set up by an aircraft's engines
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a condition resulting from a previous event; repercussion
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of backwash
Vocabulary lists containing backwash
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The Royal Family has had a difficult start to 2024 - uncertain in the face of health problems and surrounded by a backwash of rumour and speculation.
From BBC • Mar. 2, 2024
So the absence of my baseball weekend money is a piddly backwash in the tide of wealth that’s engulfing Florida.
From Seattle Times • May 6, 2023
"It's still the backwash of the freeze-in... the crude oil number implies that the refineries are not up and running," said Bob Yawger, director of energy futures at Mizuho in New York.
From Reuters • Jan. 11, 2023
Cleaning regularly is important, because there will inevitably be some backwash in your rinsing apparatus after use, which can contain virus particles, bacteria, allergens or other irritants that were flushed from the nose, Lane said.
From Washington Post • Apr. 22, 2022
The boats rolled and pitched in the violent, sucking backwash from the cliffs.
From "Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World" by Jennifer Armstrong
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
